Robert Schumann’s Scenes from Goethe’s Faust (1844-53) is one of the great romantic’s
large-scale masterworks. Set for titantic forces – an orchestra, a chorus and a
number of soloists – it is a three-part epic that spans the majority of
Goethe’s seminal closest drama. Never shying away from the darkness at the
story’s heart, it presents the eternal battle between good and evil in bold
orchestration, fusing passages of exhilarating terror with moments of
contemplative tranquility and heavenly rapture. This is dramatic music of the
highest order, seldom performed due to its difficulty and length. It is an
apotheosis of the romantic concern with literature and morality.

Conductor Daniel Harding (Orchestre de
Paris chief) has done more than anyone since Benjamin Britten to bring
Schumann’s choral masterwork back into the repertoire. In 2014, he released an
acclaimed recording of the piece with the Bavarian Radio Chorus and Symphony
Orchestra, with Christian Gerhaher and Christiane Karg as Faust and Marguerite
respectively. This March, Harding, Gerhaher and Karg will reunite in London to
play the Scenes with the London
Symphony Orchestra. It looks to be a sure highlight of the Barbican Centre’s
2015/16 season.

Christian Gerhaher is one of the world’s
most celebrated baritones. His regular appearances at Wigmore Hall have a
tendency to sell out within hours, while his part as Wolfram in the Royal Opera
House’s Tannhauser drew ecstatic
reviews. As an acknowledged expert in Schumann’s lieder, he will be the perfect
fit for this music. The multi-award winning soprano Christiane Karg,
particularly acclaimed for her roles in Mozart and Strauss, should provide his
match. Tenor Andrew Staples and bass Alistair Miles complete the experienced solo cast.